How to help a person with generalized anxiety disorder

  • Jul 26, 2021
click fraud protection
How to help a person with generalized anxiety disorder

Do you worry excessively about some things that have not happened yet and are not likely to happen? This is normal, but if those worries and high levels of anxiety are persistent and occur in all areas of your life, you may have generalized anxiety disorder. People with generalized anxiety often need psychotherapy and medication to overcome their problems. One of the most important factors is the strength and stability of your support network. Friends and family should be a critical part of treatment and can make a difference in recovering from a crisis and preventing relapse. In this Psychology-Online article, we show you how to help a person with generalized anxiety disorder.

Worries and fears are part of our life and are completely normal. It is natural to have anxiety and fear in certain situations and even necessary. The difference between a normal worry and the worry characteristic of the generalized anxiety disorder is that in the disorder the worries or fears are excessive, very intrusive, persistent and disruptive. Namely,

interfere with the development of your normal life, they paralyze you.

How To Help A Person With Generalized Anxiety Disorder - Difference Between Normal Worry And Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Be a support

Being a good support is something that seems obvious, but it is very difficult to achieve it. Make sure you can listen empathically without feeling frustrated, giving helpful advice and continually reinforcing the person to continue treatment. Feeling supported can help you recover quickly and avoid relapse. Also, try to avoid crossing the limits that your friend has established, being respectful is a key component to constitute good support.

Learn aspects of the disorder

Learn all you can about the symptoms of the disorder, its treatment, and its prevention. The more you know, the easier it is to avoid feeling frustrated and disappointed because you already know what is characteristic.

Helps to find a suitable treatment

For those people who have not yet been diagnosed or are afraid to seek a professional, have a good Support, whether family or friend, can help you take that first step toward overcoming your problems and feel very Dear. But you should keep in mind that if the person does not want help, forcing it to do so can make the situation and the relationship worse.

If you need help, ask for it

If you have a close relationship with a person with generalized anxiety disorder, you too can wear yourself out and become frustrated throughout the tough process. Using your support network will help you prevent burnout and be able to continue supporting the person with generalized anxiety. In order to help another person you must be fine.

Have fun

People with generalized anxiety disorder not only need a person to tell them about their problems, they also need to have fun in a relaxed environment without pressure.

Connect with others

Having a good support system is essential as social beings that we are. But it must be taken into account that strong support does not mean having a large number of friends, the important thing is Make sure the people who are supportive to you are people you can trust and tell them about your concerns. In addition, you must learn to identify those people who do not suit you when you have higher anxiety levels.

Learn to calm yourself

Although interacting with a person close to you is a quick way to calm yourself down, it is not always possible. In those situations you can use other strategies:

  • Look at an image that allows you to relax: family photo, beautiful landscapes, etc.
  • Listen to music that you like or is relaxing, sing, play an instrument ...
  • Smell: the smell of a candle, of the flowers in the garden, fresh air ...
  • Physical activity: any type of exercise that allows you to relax and disconnect.

Do physical exercise

Exercise is an effective and natural antidepressant. Helps release tension, reduce stress, etc. Try to walk for at least 30 minutes of physical activity on most days. Swimming, running, dancing… they are very good options. Also, it can be very good to combine it with mindfulness-based cognitive therapy.

Contemplate your concerns in a different way

The hallmark symptom of generalized anxiety disorder is chronic worry. You may believe that your worries come from other people, from the "outside." But, even if the trigger comes from the outside, your concern is built from within, on the "inside."

When you worry about something, you start to think about what worries you assuming that things are going to happen and thinking how you are going to face them, but the reality is that these things have not happened yet, or maybe they will not happen never. When you are "stuck" with these kinds of thoughts, you must ask yourself if that thought is productive or not. If your thinking is based on "what if ..." it is unproductive.

Once you have realized that this way of thinking does not help you, it is not productive, you can start trying to do it in different ways.

How to help a person with generalized anxiety disorder - I have generalized anxiety disorder, what do I do?

This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

instagram viewer